Sports Massage plays a pivotal role in keeping athletes at all levels in tip-top shape. From cross-country runners to football players and power-lifters, sports massage helps keep these individuals loose, limber and ready to go! Sports Massage isn’t just for before an event either, it is helpful after as well. Sports Massage allows the player to relax their muscles, which helps decrease the chance of sports-related stress injuries. Sports Massage is also a key element in helping athletes recover from injuries as well as preventing them. Utilizing Sports Massage can help athletes maintain, and even improve their conditioning and training. Three main types of massage are integrated into a therapeutic Sports Massage session to maximize the health and repair benefits of the session.
Effleurage
Effleurage is a French word meaning “to skim” or “to touch lightly on,” this massage technique is applied with light pressure and is commonly used to begin a massage treatment. This technique can increase blood circulation and uses long strokes to soften up the tissue. Effleurage is an important part of a Sports Massage because it warms up the tissue for strokes that require deeper pressure.
Petrissage
Once the Massage Therapist has softened up the tissues through Effleurage they will move on to Petrissage “to knead”. During Petrissage, the Massage Therapist will use their palms, fingers, and thumbs to apply deep pressure to the underlying muscles. The Massage Therapist will use slow rhythmic strokes at this time to completely work through the muscles and the tissues surrounding them. Petrissage is used to target specific muscle groups, and to address specific areas of concerns the guest may be having trouble with. The combination of Effleurage and Petrissage during a Sports Massage is important to loosen up the athlete’s muscles in an effort to prevent injuries and heal those they may already have.
Sports massage is incredibly important for athletes to maintain their prime performance condition.
